Rockford police: Alcohol, speeding contributed to fatal Kilburn crash

ROCKFORD — Alcohol and high speed contributed to a fatal crash at Kilburn and Williams avenues Friday in northwest Rockford, according to a preliminary investigation from Rockford police.

Rockford police and firefighters were called to a rollover around 3 p.m. Friday in the 2800 block of Kilburn. Three men had been ejected from an overturned Chrysler minivan.

The driver was identified as Jimmie Dean Nelson, 40, of Rockford; he was pronounced dead by hospital staff shortly after his arrival. Dave Nelson, 55, and Donald Ray Nelson, 53, both of Rockford, are hospitalized in serious condition. The three are siblings, police said.

Witnesses reported that moments before the crash, the minivan was eastbound on Kilburn traveling at a high speed. The minivan went through the intersection of Kilburn and North Central Avenue against the red light, passed other eastbound traffic on Kilburn, then sideswiped another vehicle, causing the minivan to lose control, leave the road and roll.

This crash is still being investigated by the Rockford Police Traffic Unit.